During our Fort Lauderdale FL trip, we spent a few hours checking out Butterfly World in Coconut Beach. It was a less than 30 minute drive from our hotel, and close to the beach where we planned to spend the afternoon. Butterfly World looked like a typical Florida tourist trap in some of the advertisements we read, but fortunately we dug a little deeper in internet research and took a chance on it. While it is a relatively small place, they have a fantastic variety of butterflies, birds, flowering plants and trees, and other beautiful things to see and photograph.
We went on a weekday during December, so the crowd was relatively sparse early in the morning. Also, a tip for photographers, in the morning the butterflies are relatively calm as they are sitting around with their wings spread, soaking up energy from the sunlight. A couple of hours later, more toward lunchtime, we made a second swing through the butterfly house and they were all flying around actively as you would expect butterflies to do. The morning hours were a much better time to catch some photographs, although it is also very impressive to see them all flying around.
In addition to the different habitat/viewing areas Butterfly World has a visible laboratory area where you can watch the staff nurturing new butterfly larvae and cocoons in different stages of development from behind a window. The facility also offers a small outdoor cafe overlooking the central pond, restrooms, and a gift shop.
Butterfly World is toward the higher end of the price range for similar tourist activities in FL. When we visited they were charging $30 per adult, and $22 for children. We still thought it was worth the cost for a very well managed, clean, and beautiful place to spend a few hours.
Butterfly World - Coconut Beach FL
Pictures from our day spent at Butterfly World. We were glad to find that it was a very interesting and well taken care of place, with a ton of beautiful butterflies, birds, and other wildlife to take pictures of. Relatively small venue, but several different areas tailored to the types of exhibit. Well worth a visit!
Bright blue and white parrots
Bright blue and white parrots at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
Brilliant Blue Humming Bird
Brilliant Blue Humming Bird at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
Colorful Butterfly
Colorful butterfly on flowers at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
Colorful Butterfly 2
Colorful butterfly on flowers at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
Loud Red Parrot
Loud Red Parrot at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
White Butterfly
White butterfly on purple flowers at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
Yellow Finch in flowered tree
Yellow Finch in flowered tree at Butterfly World, Coconut Beach FL
